Rue the Looking Glass
by Limpid Eyes
Summary: Shizuo is uneasy about Izaya's drastic shift in personality and is determined to discover the cause.  What - or rather, who - he finds changes everything about their relationship forever.  Eventual Shizaya.  A fill for the kink meme.
1. All in the Golden Afternoon

**Original prompts:**

The prompt I am replying to,

_There was a prompt similar to this before but I forgot where (part 3 i think? or maybe part 2) anyways, spinning off on that_

_Izaya gets sucked into the mirror world and is trapped. He is replaced by a copy, a fake. No one can tell the difference except for Shizuo (maybe fake izaya smells different? lol) _

_And shizuo goes into the weird twisted mirror world to try to save izaya_

_some thoughts to help out:_  
_- everyone LIKES the new izaya and is glad he has changed for the better? no one believes that this izaya is fake except shizuo_  
_- even if some start to think maybe this izaya is fake, they like this izaya more. only shizuo thinks it's unnatural, weird, creepy and WRONG _  
_- maybe this fake izaya really is twisted and very creepy (yandere?)_  
_- twisted mirror world is like inception lol_

And the prompt which was referred to,

_Izaya's mirror reflection took over his body and Izaya got trapped in the mirror. Shizuo realised that Izaya(the reflection)has changed and finally he found out the truth and tried to get the real Izaya back. _

_Bonus: Izaya's reflection tried to prevent Shizuo getting (real)Izaya back by telling him that he would never bothered by Izaya again if he let him trapped in the mirror forever._

**Disclaimers:**

_Durarara!_ and its characters do not belong to me. I merely exploit them for my own fun.

**Author's Note:**

This piece of fanfiction will eventually include a homosexual relationship, so if that offends you I would highly suggest that you read something else. I _really_ like to mess with people's heads, so consider this a warning ahead of time. There may be a lot of blasphemous megalomania because of Izaya, but that's the reason why we love him anyway.

The title is a reference to Lewis Carroll's _Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There_. Chapter titles are taken from both it and _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_, or are based on phrases and quotations from either children's novel.

* * *

**ALL IN THE GOLDEN AFTERNOON**

* * *

_All in the golden afternoon  
Full leisurely we glide;  
For both our oars, with little skill,  
By little arms are plied,  
While little hands make vain pretense  
Our wanderings to guide._**  
**

* * *

"Did you know," Izaya began conversationally, a benign smile gracing his thin lips, "that there is a lot of folklore associated with mirrors?" He gazed admiringly at his audience, satisfied when his look of complete adulation was returned. But he didn't miss the slight flash of bewilderment in the other's eyes, so he gasped, "No? You don't know? About the folklore associated with mirrors?"

The person he addressed stared at him mutely and shook his head, but remained rapt with attention all the same.

Izaya liked that look. So he explained. "Ah, well it probably started with the Bible, as many things seem wont to. You see, it says in there that humans are made in the image of God. So that begets the lovely question – when you look at yourself in the mirror, _are_ you looking at yourself, or someone that looks like you? Or… are you looking at God Himself?"

Seeing the puzzled expression on the other man's face, Izaya laughed lightly in amusement. "Of course, the last idea is completely ludicrous. As if God – if He existed – would confine Himself to _reflective surfaces_, of all things. How debasing." He laughed again at the sheer absurdity of the silly notion his beloved humans had once conceived long ago, before continuing. "But then, if not God Himself, what could possibly be God's image? The next 'logical' –" he paused to wave fingers disdainfully in the air, " – conclusion would be…?"

Hearing no response, Izaya sighed. "Honestly, think for yourself a little, would you? I gave you so many hints already, being the kind and generous person I am." Still receiving no reply, Izaya proceeded to provide the correct answer, albeit with a slightly disgruntled delivery.

"The next closest thing is a _soul_," Izaya revealed impatiently. "_Now _things get interesting! Why, the _soul_ is such a _peculiar_ topic. There is a _something_ that exists in humans that set them apart from other creatures, and that is this purported 'image of God'. And this vague notion seems to be the embodiment of the soul, or at least the concept of a soul, whatever it may be. Nobody has seen physical proof of its reality, yet everyone seems to accept that it exists in some way or form. And things without evidence but with acquiescence are the foundations of folklore."

"Do you see where I'm getting at?" Izaya asked, spreading his jacketed arms in a questioning gesture.

The other man merely tilted his head slightly, appearing to not _quite_ understand fully, but more or less grasping Izaya's point.

"Yes, yes, good!" Izaya exclaimed, delighted that his spectator was following his train of thought. "Now, since the soul is such a touchy subject full of mystique and veiled in superstition, it was only natural that mirrors became rather mysterious themselves. Thus, many stories sprung up about mirrors. Like the fact that breaking one will curse you for seven years, that if you see a corpse's reflection you will see the devil, and other fascinating myths. You still with me?"

The man nodded, indicating that he was still listening and comprehending.

"There are plenty of mystique surrounding mirrors, so I won't bore you with the details. Of course, nobody _now_ thinks anything strange of mirrors because they're everywhere. We know how they work… or at least, that's what we think."

A laugh escaped Izaya yet again as the man he was facing gave him a wide-eyed and startled look. The informant reached out and ran his hand lovingly down his observer's face, his fingers caressing the smooth and cold skin lightly. "Hey," he whispered conspiratorially, leaning in close. "Would you try and answer just _one_ more question for me, please?" He paused, waiting expectantly.

The other hesitated, then nodded.

Izaya remained silent a bit longer before his face suddenly split into a wicked grin. Peals of laughter erupted from his mouth, his excessive mirth shaking his body violently and forcing him to slide ungracefully to the floor. "So," he finally said, his red eyes glittering, "who am I talking to right now – God, myself, or a piece of my soul?"

The reflection silently imitated its origin's gleeful paroxysms, unable to do anything else.


	2. Down the Rabbit Hole

**DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE**

* * *

_So many out-of-the-way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible._

* * *

_It's an absofuckinglutely _beautiful _day_, Shizuo thought.

"Um, Shizuo," Tom said hesitantly, eyeing the poor man currently being throttled by his unusually absentminded partner. The debt collector breathed a sigh of relief when the former bartender noticed what he was doing and dropped his human baggage.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to do that, I was busy looking at the sky," Shizuo mumbled to the man he was choking just a few seconds prior, "because there are so few clouds today."

The recent victim of unintentional strangulation responded to this odd statement by looking like he would piss himself in the near future.

"And sorry Tom-san, I shouldn't be getting distracted on the job," Shizuo apologized again, frowning at the thought of inconveniencing his superior.

"It's… alright?" Tom decided to let the matter go and addressed the man now cowering on the asphalt. "Are you aware that your debts are extremely overdue? Today is May 4th – you should have repaid them over two months ago."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" the debtor squawked, practically prostrating himself in front of the two other men with his excessive bowing (although his head was noticeably closer to the ground when he was facing Shizuo). "I-I'll be sure to repay them in a few days! I promise!" Seeing the dubious look on Tom's face, and Shizuo cracking his knuckles threateningly, the man managed to squeak "Please don't hurt me" before passing out.

Tom blinked. "Well, I guess we'll have to deal with him another day. Sorry about that Shizuo."

Shizuo shrugged nonchalantly. "S'fine. Didn't want to beat him up anyway. Nice out today."

"Are you okay, Shizuo?" Tom asked cautiously. "You seem a lot calmer than usual. Something good happen?"

"The sky is very pretty."

Deciding that it would be better for his mental health to just ignore his partner's non-sequiturs, Tom smiled awkwardly and said, "Well, he was the last job today, so you can head on home now if you want. Or you can stay out and… enjoy the sky."

"Sounds good," Shizuo grunted, before bidding his partner goodbye. Vaguely, in the back of his mind, Shizuo knew that he was acting oddly and that this was making Tom concerned, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to care very much. He found himself ambling towards the park, looking mildly despondent to any who passed him.

The louse hadn't come to Ikebukuro lately.

Shizuo attributed his unusually good mood to Izaya's long absence, but the vicelike tendrils of suspicion had curled around his gut. Whenever the louse disappeared for a long time, he was definitely scheming something, probably something that would involve Shizuo and piss him off. Thinking about the flea instantly soured Shizuo's previous cheer, an aura of deadly intent emanating from his tall figure.

"Shizu-chan is ignoring me! How saddening."

Speak of the devil.

Shizuo whipped around, face contorted into a snarl of hatred before he even saw the man behind him. He was actually a tad surprised at the other's presence, an experience that was new to him. "Flea, what the _fuck_ are you doing here?"

"Nothing suspicious," Izaya said airily, grinning widely. "I was just going to grab some celebratory ootoro when I saw you and decided to follow you for a bit to see if you would notice me." Izaya laughed in his fucking annoying way. "My, my, Shizu-chan… you are very unobservant! I've been walking behind you for the past ten minutes and you didn't even notice me."

Shizuo stopped looking for the nearest projectile.

There was something… _off_ about the flea.

"Shizu-chan, can we stop fighting just for one day?" asked Izaya with cloying sweetness. "You should stop bothering me because today is when I was _born_!" He spun around with arms outstretched, the stupid furry jacket flapping behind him.

Dismissing any unsettling thoughts from his mind, Shizuo scowled darkly. "You fucking louse, I don't care if it's your damn birthday. I'm still going to kill you!" He cracked his knuckles slowly. "In fact, the fact that you're still alive to celebrate another year of your life _really pisses me off!_" And with that declaration, Shizuo launched himself at Izaya, who – predictably – laughed and ran away.

"I guess it was too much to hope for that Shizu-chan will stop trying to kill me," Izaya called over his shoulder in his infuriating singsong voice, gracefully vaulting over a garbage bin and then dodging it after Shizuo hurled it with murderous precision. "Then again," he continued nonchalantly, as if taking a nice stroll around the neighbourhood as opposed to freerunning for his life, "I missed Shizu-chan's birthday so why should I expect a gift on mine?" Going down an alley, he quickly climbed up a rusting fire escape.

Following closely, Shizuo lunged at the dilapidated metal structure that creaked under both their weight. "Stop running so I can kill you, you little shit," he growled, his enraged glare barely muted by the sunglasses perched on his nose.

Oddly, Izaya uncharacteristically waited on the rooftop, a strange smile ghosting his lips. "Say Shizu-chan, what do you want for your belated birthday present?"

"I want your fucking ass _out of my city!_" Shizuo snapped. In his anger he nearly missed the brief _look_ that passed over Izaya's face, but he caught it for a short instant. Immediately, his rage became confusion, because for some reason… the flea looked _happy_. But the moment passed, and the familiar smirk that pissed him off to no end returned.

"Then I have good news for Shizu-chan!"

"Anything you have to say is bad news to me, fucking louse."

"Not this." Then Izaya leaned toward Shizuo and whispered so quietly that the latter almost didn't hear. "Heiwajima Shizuo will never be bothered again by Orihara Izaya for as long as he lives."

"What?" Shizuo exclaimed incredulously, forgetting to be angry or confused.

But Izaya had already pulled away, exploiting the other's momentary lapse in concentration to leave.

Shizuo muttered curses under his breath, annoyed with himself for letting his enemy escape so easily. "Who is he trying to fool anyway," he muttered, glowering deeply. "As if I'd fall for that, the fucking bastard will be back again like the damn insect he is."

However, the promise was kept; Shizuo never saw Orihara Izaya ever again in Ikebukuro.


End file.
